See on Scoop.it - Alain Renaudin
The Chinese government wants to cut air pollution emissions by a quarter by 2017.
When air pollution is likely to lead to serious public health risks, social grievances, loss of activity and loss of attractiveness, we become concerned about the environment. This is what I call environmental policy for its own sake.
We always think that we have to lose interest in ourselves in order to take an interest in the environment, that concern for the environment is sacrificial, for growth, for our well-being, for our habits, etc. This is sometimes true (and necessary), but it is not the only lever, nor the most powerful one. This is sometimes true (and necessary), but it is not the only lever, nor the most powerful. It is also out of personal, economic, social and political interest that we should care about the environment. We need to take an interest in ourselves, here and now, and not necessarily in them, elsewhere, in the long term.
We are no strangers to protecting the planet, as if there were a planet and us. Preserving the planet also means preserving humanity, and preserving humanity will increasingly require us to protect the planet - it's our destiny.
Human nature being constant, the same interests that harmed the planet yesterday will benefit it tomorrow. The trick is to have more to gain than to lose by protecting the planet.
See on www.smartplanet.fr